The Secret of Spellshadow Manor 4 by Bella Forrest (life books to read TXT) 📕

for him at any moment. It didn’t seem like Caius was going to show up, either. He had to find a way out.

There was no window, and the room was too small and confined for teleportation; he didn’t want to end up splattered against the ground, his legs in one place, his torso in another.

With dawning realization, Alex knew there was only one person who could get him out of this scrape quickly.

“Person” isn’t quite right, Alex thought grimly, hating that necessity had brought him to the conclusion it had. Gritting his teeth, he closed his eyes and spoke the name, resenting the sound as it escaped his lips.

“Elias,” he whispered.

Chapter 24

The rafters above Alex’s head were swathed in shadow, and his eyes lingered upon the darkness there as he waited for the vaporous troublemaker to arrive. It was bad enough that Alex had been forced to call him, but to have to wait as well… Alex’s patience was already growing thin.

“Elias?” he said sharply.

At the second request, the shadows shifted, taking shape as a familiar figure poured from the ceiling. With a soft whisper of air, Elias landed on all fours, taking the crackling form of his feline self.

“You rang?” Elias purred, fangs flashing as he brushed up against the stone wall, scratching a misty itch.

“You took your time,” Alex remarked bitterly, although he was a little surprised that the shadow-man had actually come when called. “Feeling sheepish, are we?”

Elias smirked, despite his form. “Not quite—I’d say more catty. Careful of my tongue. It’s sharp today.”

“If I hear a single note I don’t like on that sharp tongue of yours, or a flash of any cattiness whatsoever, I will not repeat this,” Alex warned, gesturing between them.

A strange look shifted across Elias’s feline face. With a whoosh, he swirled upward into his semi-human form, still crackling from the effects of the barrier magic, as if tuning in to a distant television station. The stars moved in his eyes, flowing over the shadowy lids, trickling down to meet the galaxies that fluctuated in kaleidoscopic patterns across his features. Alex imagined he saw a sun exploding in a burst of glittering silver light just above the darkness where Elias’s heart ought to have been.

“No cattiness of any sort,” Elias said, with unexpected solemnity. “Though I must say, I wasn’t expecting to hear your dulcet tones beckoning me so soon, not after the way you flounced—sorry, departed—our company the other day. Understandable, certainly, and I was pleasantly surprised to hear your call. As you well know, I’m not normally one for doing as I’m told, but I can make an exception for you.” His vaporous hand twisted as he gestured toward Alex, and though he hadn’t quite lost all his usual sardonic humor, Alex could see the shadow-man was making attempts to tone it down.

A true challenge for you, Alex thought wryly.

“I wouldn’t have called if I weren’t desperate,” Alex retorted.

“Ouch.” Elias feigned a wince, clasping his misty hands to his cavernous chest.

Alex raised an eyebrow. “You can go, if you want.”

“Can I?” Elias taunted, a knowing smile stretching the shifting shadows around his mouth. Alex realized they were at something of an impasse; he couldn’t just let Elias leave without opening the door, and yet he didn’t want to seem as if he truly needed him.

“There’s a beetle stopping me from unlocking the door. I need to get out so I can deal with Alypia, and find my friends,” he said, not meeting Elias’s gaze. “I would like you to unlock it.”

“I would like a castle of my own, a supermodel wife, a mountain of cash—perhaps an actual body that doesn’t keep trying to escape. But sadly we don’t always get the things we would like,” Elias replied. “I’m afraid it’s a no can do—these were not made for unpicking locks.” He flapped his vaporous hands at Alex.

It became clear that neither he nor Elias was going anywhere, and nothing was more frustrating. If Alex had known his former guide couldn’t do anything, he would never have called him down from his dark bower. Now, not only was Alex locked away, unable to help friends who might be in a world of danger, but he had to endure Elias’s sarcastic company.

“You really can’t do anything?” Alex asked. If Elias could be of no help, he could do nothing but wait.

Elias lifted the peaks of his shadowy shoulders in a half-hearted shrug. “It would appear not. Looks like it’s just the two of us.” He grinned, humming a familiar tune that seemed to echo in the peculiarity of whatever served as his throat. Alex had to wonder if this was exactly what the shadow-man wanted—a private audience.

“No humming.” Alex glared.

“How about a song? We could duet.”

“No singing, no humming—you’re distracting me!” Alex snapped, trying to think of what other options he had.

Elias raised his hazy palms. “Temper, temper! My apologies, Webber. I was only suggesting amusing pastimes to make the time tick by all the quicker.” A smirk undermined his apology. “Though you always did have trouble with focus.”

“One more word, and I swear I’ll blow you out of this cell.” Alex jabbed a finger in the direction of the shadow-guide’s wispy mouth.

“I’d like to see you try,” Elias muttered.

“What was that?”

“Nothing—not a word, not a peep.”

“Good,” Alex grumbled. “Seeing as I’m not getting rid of you anytime soon, I do have a couple of questions.”

“Ooh, I love a Q and A, don’t you?” Elias purred.

Alex rolled his eyes. “Can we keep the sass to a minimum?”

“Never.” Elias grinned.

Alex sighed. “Well, I met with Caius, and he shed some light on why these royals seem to want me,” he said, watching Elias’s face for any hint of guilt or panic. “It seems I can be of some use to them, thanks to the blood running through my veins.”

“Well, the anti-magic,” Elias quipped.

Alex frowned. “Is that what you wanted all along, for me to learn about my ‘purpose’ without you having